The New Indian Express

Chennai: If you thought that the scene near the US Consulate in Chennai resembled that of a Vishnu temple in the month of Purattasi, you could scarcely be faulted for the misconception. With the interviews for visas to the USA restarting after a week of protests, applicants decided to leave...

Chennai: Even as a craze for pedigree dogs has been doing the rounds in the city, a determined group of people have been tirelessly promoting the Great Indian Dog. Their efforts seemed to have paid off at the Blue Cross Adoptathon on Sunday evening, as a majority of those who...

Chennai: The renovation work on the Anna Arch at Arumbakkam would begin from September 26. A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa at the Secretariat on Monday. During the discussions, the Chief Minister advised the officials about the renovation measures to...

Bangalore: Spread over an area of 150 acres in North Bangalore, Hebbal lake is the success story of a conserved water body that faced lot of controversies and issues pertaining to its rejuvenation and maintenance. But, today it is a haven for a large number of migratory birds. Serving as...

Bangalore: Following the diamond jubilee celebrations in June this year, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly will now be witnessing a major renovation work adding a new and modern touch to the majestic two storeyed assembly hall of the Vidhana Soudha. Speaking to City Express, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly Speaker, KG Bopaiah...

Bangalore: The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) will be halting the process of refunding students for those who purchased bus passes before a reduction in rates was introduced. The refund process which started on September 7 at 36 centres across the city was scheduled to run till September 30. It...

Hyderabad: Despite showers in the last few weeks, the prospect of drinking water shortage still looms large over the twin cities. In fact, no less an official than the new managing director of the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) J Syamala Rao indicated that citizens should brace...

Hyderabad: The University of Hyderabad is gearing up for students union elections. Unlike in the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), where polls are a controversial issue due to the opposition of students to the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations, the elections are relatively smooth and uncomplicated in UoH. BV Sharma, Dean...

Hyderabad: For all their publicity, the cell phone companies, with their celebrity ambassadors, seem to be a little lax in adhering to norms. A number of cell phone towers, said to be in hundreds, in the city are illegal, according to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC). The civic body...

Thiruvananthapuram: If things go as planned, the plastic-shredding units at Palayam may soon start functioning. The City Corporation will initiate discussions with two private firms at Kollam and Perumbavoor in the coming days to arrive at a decision on transporting cleaned plastic waste. According to Mayor K Chandrika, the Corporation...

Thiruvananthapuram: Thousands of tearful mourners poured into the city on Monday to catch a last glimpse of veteran actor Thilakan, who died at a city hospital in the early hours of the day. Thilakans body was first taken to the residence of his son Shoby Thilakan at Vettamukku here around...

Thiruvananthapuram: The culvert on the Edanada-Killiyar stream which is notorious for causing flooding in the Pipinmoodu area is being widened. The PWD-Irrigation Department began the widening work on Monday. The widening of the culvert has been a long-pending demand of the residents of the Pipinmoodu area. Waterlogging in the residential...

Bangalore: Officials and miners named in the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee and the Karnataka Lokayukta reports are feeling the heat. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has largely based its investigations on these reports of illegal export of 50.79 lakh metric tonnes of iron ore from Belekeri port. The...

Chennai: Though he was supposedly suspended by Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh for irregularities in awarding contracts, a top official of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) is believed to have attended a pre-bid meeting at the airport here on Friday, drawing flak from unionists in the airport. According to...

Hyderabad: Protests were held by opposition parties against the hike in APSRTC bus fares across the state on Monday. On Sunday, the state government had hiked the prices in APSRTC bus fares by 10 to 15 per cent citing increase in the price of diesel as the reason. The fare...

Virudhunagar: As many as 233 firecracker units in Virudhunagar district were being issued show-cause notice by the district administration for violations. Also, the licenses of 48 units were suspended so far, said R Raju, District Revenue Officer of Virudhunagar. In the wake of the fire tragedy at a cracker unit...

Kochi: Registrar-General of Kerala High Court Kemal Pasha has submitted before the court that the efforts to make Malayalam the language of the court proceedings failed to yield any result even after holding repeated discussions with the state. Kemal Pasha submitted that a committee headed by Justice K K Narendran,...

Madurai: A division bench of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court here has directed the Union Government to file a report listing steps that could be taken to prevent the deaths of Indian citizens in Sri Lankan waters in future. Justices Vinod K Sharma and A Selvam issued...

Thanjavur: The hearing on the Sri Krishna School fire in which 94 children were charred to death in the worst-ever tragedy to hit a school in the country on July 16, 2004, officially began in Thanjavur district court on Monday. On the earlier occasion, when hearing was fixed to be...

Mysore: With the Cauvery agitation gaining momentum, the Tamil population who suffered during the 1991 Cauvery riots are a worried lot. More than 25,000 families living in Mysore, Mandya and Chamarajanagar districts have sought police protection. Isolated Tamil families, particularly those living in farms across Mysore and Chamarajanagar districts, are...

Kozhikode: The state Cabinet will take a decision on initiating a CBI probe into the larger conspiracy behind the murder of RMP leader T P Chandrasekharan after verifying all legal aspects, Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan has said. Speaking to mediapersons after a meeting with K K Rema, wife of slain...

Chennai: Partymen must remember that Stalin and Alagiri are not against each other, but are part of the DMK. This was party patriarch M Karunanidhis message to the warring factions of the DMKs Madurai unit. Blaming part of the troubles between the factions " headed by his sons MK Alagiri...

Bangalore: These days former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa is pensive. The question before him: whether to stay in the BJP " which he built in the state with his sweat and blood" " or find a new life outside the saffron party. To be honest, I am in a...

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minsiter J Jayalalithaa on Monday ordered officials to immediately file a petition in the Supreme Court praying for an order to Karanataka to release the Cauvery river water. Jayalalithaa took the decision after chairing a meeting of ministers and officials, said a government statement. The chairman...

Chennai: Not many people will receive a call from a former president of the country. But patients and staff at the Paterson Cancer Centre were on cloud nine when they received a call from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, who spoke to them, congratulating the team and blessing the patients. The...

Chennai: I have a dream! the quote was no more pertained only to Martin Luther King. The children who live in streets too have their own dreams, be it eliminating issues such as alcohol consumtion or to eradicate child sexual abuse. Around 20 children, who live in streets, expressed their...

Bangalore: The garbage menace has been accentuated using every possible means, be it the media, the public, the civic bodies, NGOs, the state government and even the central government. A city-wide discomfort fuelled by a groundswell of anger brought the incompetence of the civic apparatus, out in the open with...

Bangalore: Trying to tackle the menace of illegal usage of flex boards and cut outs in the name of publicity, BBMP Commissioner Rajneesh Goel has tightened the grip on the zonal officers. As a result 96 criminal cases pertaining to cheap publicity have been registered against various film producers, politicians...

Bangalore: The Maruthi Sevanagar over bridge is an important link between the Central Business District and the ever expanding residential areas like Kamanahalli, Banaswadi, Ramamurthy Nagar and Kalyan Nagar. However, the unscientifically designed two-lane bridge has failed to cope up with the exploding vehicular traffic. Hence, the residents in the...

Hyderabad: Writer and social activist Arundhati Roy on Sunday demanded an immediate revoke of the ban imposed on Revolutionary Democratic Front (RDF) in the state. Addressing the gathering at a meeting organised by the Viplava Rachaitala Sangham (Revolutionary Writers Association) against the ban, Roy termed the ban unconstitutional and urged...